Sheet feeder



May 30, 1933.

J. M. DARBAKER 1,911,884

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Patented May 30, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I JAMES M. DARIBAKER,OF NEW (J'ASTLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO AMIEZRICAN SHEET AND TINPLATE COMPANY, CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY SHEET FEEDER Application flledli'ovember 5, 1931. Serial 110 573,206.

This invention relates to sheet feeders, one of the objects being torapidly feed piled sheets, particularly metal sheets, one at a time.Other objects will become apparent.

Having reference to the accompanying drawings which show one form of amachine constructed according to the present invention;

Figure 1 is a side elevation.

Figure 2 is a top plan.

Figure 3 is an enlarged cross-section, taken from the line IIIIII inFigure 1.

Figure 4 is a detail from Figure 3.

Figures 5 and 6 are'enlarged details from Figure 1.

Figure 7 is an enlarged detail from Figure 3.

Figure 8 is a side elevation of Figure 7. Figure 9 is a modification ofthe structure shown in Figure 4.

Figure 10 is a partial cross-section taken from the line XX in Figure 1.

Figure 11 is a partial cross-section taken from the line XI-XI in Figure1.

In detail, under one end of a frame 1 is extended a track 2 carrying atruck 3 loaded with a pile of metal sheets 4. This truck is loaded whenat a point beyond the frame with the aid of upstanding sheet loadingguides 5, one of which is laterally adjustable by a crank handled screw6.and the other hinged so the truck can travel thereby, when loaded, toa point beneath the frame. A bar 7 locks this lunged member 1n gu dingposlf p one f the Sheets the push rod ing longer, pushing the center ofthis sheet tion.

This loaded truck butts into a vertical sheet guide 8 when rolledbeneath the frame 1, and a second vertical sheet guide 9'is placedagainst its rear. The latter guide is horizontally adjustably carried bya gate 10, thus vallowing for the entrance and exit of the truck. Thedrawings show the loading guides 5 much closed to this gate than theyactually are in order to'keep the scale as large as possible.-

When between the guides 8 and 9, the truck is directly over a hydraulichoist 11 which enables vertical lifting of the piled- 59 sheets 4.Horizontally adjustable side guides 12 prevent lateral movement of thetop sheets when and while being lifted.

At the top of the rear sheet guide 9 is a horizontally corrugatedsubstantially flat faced electromagnet 13. When the machine is inoperation the hoist 11 raises the piled sheets 4 until the upper onesare somewhat above the bottom of the face of this magnet, as indicatedby dotted lines, this magnet then serving to aline the sheets and toretard the feeding of doubled sheets.

A pair of horizontal bars 14 are positioned along the top of the frame 1and slidably carry an arrangement which picks the sheets 4 up one-by-onefor feeding. A hand wheel operated screw 15, fixed in a journal 16 onthe frame 1 is in engagement with this arrangement for regulating itsmovement. 7

This sheet pick-up arrangement specifi cally consists of a crank 17,driven by an electric motor 18, which operates a doubly jointedconnecting-rod 19, this rod having a short cross-head 20 atits firstjoint engaging cam surfaces 21 and a longer cross-head or shaft 22 atits end engaging cam surfaces 23. The shaft 22 mounts brackets 22"-which vertically slidably. carry a pair of depending rods 23 havingsuction cups 24 on theirlower ends'and a centrally located longerpush-rod 25-, these members being in each instance urged downward bysprings 26. c When the crank 17 is rotated by the motor 18 the suctioncups 24 will engage the downwardly and causing the whole to assume abent form which will'impart .a substantial rigidity to it. The camsurfaces 21 and 23 are shaped sothat the sheetis first lifted verticallyacross the face of the magnet 13, whose attractive force will pull offany second sheets accidentally carried by counteracting the suctionbetween-the two, and then moved at an upward incline. The corrugatedface of the magnet servesqto jar the sheets lifted thereby and aidsinbreak- 'ing the suction between them. Preferably,

a counterbalance 27 vis arranged in connection-with the crank 1'8. toprevent undue vibration when these various parts are reciprocated.

The crank 17 is arranged to operate a pair of cam operated poppet valves27 and 28, these being in connection with the crank 17 and respectivelyconstructed and arranged to create a vacuum in the suction cups 24 justprior to their approach to the top one of sheets 4, and to hold thisuntil the crossheads 20 and 22 have reached their uppermost movement,when the vacuum is broken and atmospheric pressure admitted.

In order to prevent overheating of the magnet 13 and waste of current, acommutator segment 29 and brushes 30 may be arranged in connection withthe operating mechanism of the valves 27 and 28 and in circuit with thismagnet, these parts being timed so that the magnet is energized onlyduring the vertical movements of the crossheads 20 and 22.

A conveyor comprising a plurality of pinch-rollers 31, driven by a motor32 through chains 33, is positioned on the frame 1 so that the firstpair of rolls will engage one of the sheets 4 when lifted thereto by thearrangement just described, this latter having been longitudinallyadjusted by the sore 15 to hold the sheets near their ends remote fromthis conveyor so that they may have their ends thrust towards the same.When the sheet is once engaged in the pinchrolls it is carried forwardby them and onto a belt conveyor 34 which carries" them to a stand ofcold rolls, 35, this conveyor preferably being mounted on a swingingsupport 36 so that it may be folded back, as indicated by the dottedlines, to permit access to the rolls. Cold rolls are provided generallywith a billy roller 37 and it has been found preferable to feed thesheets substantially tangentially thereto by inclining the belt conveyor34 at the roll end.

Although the magnet 13 is generally effective in removing second sheetsit does not under all conditions do so and cannot, of course, preventthe feeding of sheets having bent corners or lefective edges. As asafety precaution, therefore, the second pair of rolls is arranged inconnection with a micrometric switch 38 operating a sheet deflector 39by means of a solenoid 40 levered thereto. This deflector is located inthe path of the sheets as they leave the third pair of rolls, as shownin the drawings, these being reduced in size at their center and thedefiector having a finger 41 which lies in this reduced portion.

When the sheet pick-up arrangement accidentally feeds two sheets theswitch 38 will energize the solenoid 40 and throw the deflector 39 intodeflecting position. The moment the back ends of these sheets leave thesecond pair of rolls the solenoid will be deenergized but this will notmatter as the deflector will simply fall on thesheets and then back intoits normal position upon complete passage thereof. A chute 42 carriesthese deflected sheets to a hand truck 43.

In the event of sheets having bent corners or defective edges the switch38 would not be energized sufficiently long to hold the deflector up toproperly deflect the sheet, the rolls operating this switch beingtherefore constructed to contact only the central por tion of the sheetsso as to normally be operated only by double sheets. To prevent thefeeding of sheets of the character above described the last stand ofrolls are made to contact the sheets throughout their length and tooperate a pair of trip switches 44 arranged in connection with the motor32 to stop it. When this happens the defective sheets may be manuallyremoved from the belt conveyer 34 to prevent damage to the cold rolls.These switches, as wellv as the switch 38, are set differently fordifferently gaged sheets. 1

As sheets are removed from those piled on the truck 3 the hydraulichoist 11 must be operated to maintain the sheets at the proper point onthe face of the magnet 13. This is accomplished by controlling the motor11 operating the pump of this hoist, by a button switch- 45, one of therods 23 carrying a finger 46 on its upper end for contact therewith. Theend of this finger is preferably provided with a vertical adjustmentwhich is fixed so that the switch 45 is closed when the suction cup onthe end of this rod falls below the level where the sheets should be.This switch may be arranged to operate the motor for a predeterminedinterval of time, raising the level of the sheets so that the switch 45will not be again closed until more sheets have been removed.

The drawings illustrate the switch 45 in circuit with an electromagneticswitch 45 which controls the current to the motor 11 which is drivingthe hydraulic pump for the lift 11. The brushes 30 of the contactcommutator segment 29 are also arranged in circuit with anelectromagnetic switch 30* to energize the magnet 13 through a powerline thus controlled. Other arrangements than these may prove preferablein actual v I claim: 1-. A sheet feeder including spaced vacuum cupshaving respectively inclined holding faces and means for moving saidcups in a vertically straight line direction.

2. A sheet feeder for apile of sheets including a magnet having asubstantially flat horizontally indented face positioned next to andextending above the edges of the upper sheets of said pile, and meansfor vertically lifting sheets from said pile.

3. A sheet feeder for a pile of sheets ineluding means for lifting asheet from said pile, an electroma'gnet arranged with a face proximatethe top of said pile and means for energizing said magnet when saidfirst named means is adjacent thereto and for deenergizing the same whenthis means is 0 remote therefrom.

4. A sheet feeder for a pile of sheets, including the combination of aframe, sheet en a 'n means carried b said frame sheet raising meansarranged under said frame for movement towards said sheet engagingmeans, tracks registering with said sheet raising means and leading fromsaid frame,

a gate arranged on said frame over said tracks, a vertical sheet guidecarried by said gate, and a magnet constructed and arranged for carriageby said gate above said vertical sheet guide to present its attractiveface to sheets lifted vertically-thereby.

5. The method of vertically removing sheets from a pile of the sameconsisting in edgewisedly dragging the removed sheets over a corrugatedsurface to jar them loose from any adhering thereto.

6. A sheet feeder including the combination of a vertically movableholder for piled sheets, electrically operated means for moving saidholder, vertically lifting resilient means recip-rocably mounted andarranged for the removal of sheets from said holder, a fingerresiliently carried by one of said lifting means, and a switchpositioned for contact by said finger and arranged in circuit with saidelectrical means for moving said holder.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

I JAMES M. DARBAKER.

